Flying machine



Aug. 31, 1937. N. D. BELINSKI 2,091,530

FLYING MACHINE Filed May 2, 1954 Patented Aug. 31, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFME 6 Claims.

This invention relates to that type of flying machine in which a major part of the lifting power necessary for the suspension in the air is supplied by the lighter-than-air gas, contained in the envelope of this flying machine, and the other part is generated aerodynamically during the motion of this envelope through the air under engine power.

The main purpose of this invention therefore, is to obtain a more rational and economical use of this engine power, by making it carry load, in addition to serving as the means of propulsion.

Another object of this invention is to produce an airship, autonomous in its operation, that isindependent of the special landing facilities and multitudinous ground-crews required by ordinary airships, which would possess superior strength of body, have better utilization of the interior spaces of the ship and better operating qualities.

With these and other objects in view, the arrangement consists of many novel features, as hereinafter described, and shown on the accompanying drawing, on which:

Fig. 1 represents a side elevation of this flying machine, containing all the improvements within its structure, described and shown on all the remaining figures of this drawing.

Fig. 2 represents a plan view.

Fig. 3 shows a front view.

Fig. 4 shows a front view of this flying machine, in which for the floats, shown on a previous figure is substituted a landing ,gear, and with ailerons folded for parking.

Fig. 5 represents a front elevational view of the machine.

As may be seen from the drawing, the envelope of this flying machine has the shape of an airfoil, or a narrow section of an aeroplane wing, with its upper surface formed to have a proper camber, or curvature, and with the lower surface made practically flat as shown in Figures 3 and 4 so as to develope the lifting force when this envelope attains an air speed. This envelope is rounded oif on all sides, as may be seen in the front elevation, and it carries all the necessary apparatus and auxiliaries in order to make flight and maneuvering possible.

Thus numbers 20 and 2| denote the air propellers, 22 the folding ailerons, 23 the folding vertical rudders and 24 the elevator or horizontal rudder disposed behind the cuneiform end 32 of the hull. At 25 is located a control cabin. The entire ship rests on the landing gear which may be composed of floats, 26, or wheels 21, or it may have a. combination of both.

The front propellers 20 are mounted on the ailerons 22, and the rear propellers on the streamlined nacelles 28, supported from the airships envelope by the brackets. These ailerons 22 are devised with the main object of improving the airships maneuvering qualities, which is important especially when the ship is flying close to the ground.

The lower part of the envelope 30 is made preferably more rigid, and has stronger covering than the upper part 3|.

The ailerons and vertical rudders with their stabilizing fins were made folding so as to reduce the space occupied by the airship on the ground and also to reduce to the least possible minimum the pressure of the wind blowing from the side, when the ship is parked on the ground, and so to minimize the danger of it being swept away.

As was mentioned already, the envelope, having an airfoil shape, developes the lift in motion through the air. The lift however, in this case appears only as a gratuitous effect of the speed, or its by-product, which, not taking into account the ailerons, does not absorb by itself any considerable amount of engine power, as long as the angle of attack is maintained, near zero. The envelope of the airship, being carefully streamlined, approximates the body of least resistance in any case, regardless of whether it is as commonly cigar shaped, or has an airfoil form. The power requirements for a given speed therefore are substantially the same, and consequently the increase in the lifting power represents a net gain, derived merely from the change in the shape of the envelope. Since the gain in lift is very considerable, it appears that the operation of the airship of common shape is quite wasteful from the point of View of the proper use of the engine power.

A part of this gain could be used in covering the extra weight of the additional apparatus, like ailerons and landing gear, and also in the strengthening of the structure of the envelope, the balance remaining as an increase in the payload carried by the ship.

The oval shape of the airship with its flat bottom has further peculiar qualities, manifest when the air currents from the side sweep across the airship and tend to blow it oif its parking place. As illustrated on Fig. 5, the currents entering the under side of the ship at 32, in the narrow space between the ground and the bottom of it, acquire greater velocity, which, according to Bernoullis law, is accompanied by a fall in air pressure. A partial vacuum is therefore created in this space, which tends to hold the ship to its place. Since the air pressure varies oppositely as the wind velocity, it follows that the stronger the wind blows, the higher the vacuum and the more firmly the ship will be held to the ground.

This Vacuum anchorage is therefore of great importance to the safety of the ship, as it enables it to maneuver in the face of these winds under its own power, without the assistance of the ground crew. In order to make this maneuvering 0 easier, the wheels of the landing gear are supplied with auxiliary motors.

It is however obvious that during the take-off this vacuum force should be destroyed, in order to enable the ship to rise. This could be accomplished by giving the airship an initial angle of attack. In this case the air, rushing under the ship into the converging space a, produces instead of a vacuum, an area of higher pressure, providing that this angle is of sufficient magnitude. At the same time use is made of the ailerons by bringing them to the maximum angle of attack, to enable the nose of the ship to rise.

The airfoil shape, in addition to increasing the useful lift, also increases the safety of the ship on the ground, on account of the vacuum anchorage, and in the air allows the ship to glide. Such a shape further improves the airships maneuvering qualities. Further advantages of this shape lie also in the fact that the ship, once in the air, will be able to fly even if a considerable amount of the lifting gas is lost, as long as the engines are able to maintain the normal speed, in which case most of the weight of the ship will be supported aerodynamically. In

this way, through the multiplicity of means, the safety of operation of the airship is increased.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as novel features and desire to secure my rights by Letters Patent:

'1. An airship hull having: a bottom flat substantially throughout its entire extent; lateral cross sections with contours changing their tangential directions continuously and gradually at all points; and wing section contoured vertical longitudinal cross sections, whereby a transverse air flow between thev ground and the airship resting thereon produces an air pressure reduction beneath, the hull.

2. An airship hull having: a bottom flat substantially throughout its entire extent; lateral cross sections wider than high with contours changing their tangential directions continuously and gradually at all points; and wing section contoured vertical longitudinal cross sections, whereby a transverse air flow between the ground and the airship resting thereon'produces an air pressure reduction beneath the hull.

3. An airship hull having: a bottom-flat substantially throughout its entire extent, lateral cross sections wider than high with contours changing their tangential directions continuously and gradually at all points; and a wing section contoured vertical longitudinal cross section, whereby a transverse air flow between the ground and the airship resting thereon produces an air pressure reduction beneath the hull.

4. An airship hull having: a bottom flat substantially throughout its entire extent; a downwardly inclined rounded front portion; a cuneiform end portion with a horizontal rear edge; and lateral cross sections well rounded at all their points, whereby a transverse air flow be tween the ground and the airship resting thereon produces an air pressure reduction beneath the hull.

5. An airship hull having: a bottom flat substantially throughout its entire extent; a bent down rounded front portion; a cuneiform end portion with a rear horizontal edge; and a middle portion wider than high and well rounded on all sides, whereby a transverse air flow between the ground and the airship resting thereon produces an air pressure reduction beneath the hull.

6. A pronouncedly oblong airship hull having: a bottom fiat substantially throughout its en- ,tire extent; a bent down rounded front portion;

a cuneiform end portion with a horizontal tr'ai1- ing edge; and a middle portion wider 'thanhigh' and well rounded over its entire surfacefwhereby a transverse air flow between the ground andthe airship resting thereon produces an air pressure reduction beneath the hull.

NICHOLAS D. BELINSKI. 1 

